Merida's Bowties
by To-my-dismay
Summary: When Merida stumbles upon a peculiar blue box, and an equally peculiar man called the doctor, what adventures will our brave princess embark on? And will she have the heart to leave the doctor in the end?
1. Chapter 1

Her bow bouncing against her leaning back, Merida rode on her horse, insistent in finding the wisps. Long locks of ginger hair billowed behind her, the wind conveniently blowing the messy curls out of Merida's face.

'Woah there, angus!' Merida exclaimed at her horse. The stallion was galloping at dangerous speed. Angus came to a heart-stopping halt, and Merida almost flew off the saddle. Her bow and quiver slid down the length of her arms, and many of the arrows dropped silently to the pasture. Angus started grazing the grass, lazily chewing on the dewy green meadow. (And completely nonchalantly almost biting at the fallen arrows...)

Merida breathed heavily and, doe-eyed as usual, sighed until her thumping heart settled.

"ANGUS!" she bellowed. The horse resumed its very serene lunchtime, taking no notice of the angry princess. Well, not just any princess. If she didn't love this horse so deeply, I swear she would've taken one of those discarded arrows and struck it right in the foot. But no, Angus was her sweetheart, no matter what a pain in the bosom he usually was.

Merida let herself drop to the mildewy ground and scrambled to collect her arrows. Fussily, she put on quite a performance of discontentment to Angus (though the horse was quite unshaken). As she finished bobbing for arrows, a very impatient Merida stomped her way through the trees, muttering impressively rude accusations pertaining to her horse and what should be done with it, in elaborate Celtic tongue.

"Speaking of Angus," Merida turned around, "where in the king's name is he?"

"ANGUS!"

"Hey, you crazy stallion! Where are you?!" She yelled.

Hearing no answer, Merida sighed and dropped to the muddy ground. Contorting her face into various ridiculous expressions out of sheer boredom, for she would have to wait for the horse. Ever since the misadventure with the bears, Angus has been (secretly, not so secretly) terrified of the wisps. Doesn't want to see them, hear about them, much less search for them. But Merida's one tough Scotswoman, she won't have any of it.

"Ugh," Merida groaned knowingly, "Fuck you Angus!"

Tired of this ongoing routine, where Angus 'forgets' her in the middle of the forest, and only comes back to get her when he is reminded (And by 'reminded' I mean having angry retorts flung at him by Elinor), Merida got up and wiped the dirt and clingy pine needles off of her dress.

She hummed a Gaelic tune as she strutted through the thick brambles of the forest.

"I said I was gonna find the wisps, and that's what I intend to do. Merida does not back down!" Her voice cracked with purpose, and Merida smirked at how she resembled her father.

"Well I certainly am not like my mother, so what else is there?" She thought aloud. Merida scoured her brain for a trace of any hints that might lead up to the wisps.

"Well..." She spoke. "They're...slightly-" suddenly, silence befell her as she took in the sight before her eyes.

"Blue..." She continued, her voice trailing off along with her gaze.

"Really blue...My goodness, that's bluer than the sky!" Merida exclaimed, as her eyes devoured every last inch of bluey goodness. A big 'police box' made of wood painted so blue, your eyes hurt. It was beautiful, no doubt- but all the same strange. Well, Merida was familiar with strange- especially the kind of strange relating to wooden structures (wink wink- I'm talking about the woodcarving witch you ignorants).

A whirring noise sounded as the blue box flickered in and out of sight. Scared of losing the box, Merida's very quick instincts kicked in.

"NO, stop it! Don't go!" She jumped towards it and dropped at its very slim door. Merida grabbed at the base of the box, grunting in frustration. The whirring stopped, along with the flickering. Merida sighed, relieved- and got up hastily trying to ignore the state of her dress.

"My mother is going to be furious..." She mumbled, referring to the dirt currently ordaining her clothing.

While busy fussing about her dress, the door of the big box swiftly opened, and with a creek, out jumped a sharply dressed man. Merida barely noticed this change of pace up until the man spoke, his voice so intoxicating- and his accent- so different from anything she'd ever heard, that she had no choice but to look up. Refined jaw line, very prominent chin, eyebrows barely there, and the hair was just a beautiful cascade of silky goodness. But the most noticeable thing about this man was the necklace he wore.

"It's a bowtie" the man informed her, as he noticed her gaze had settled on it. "Bowties are cool," He added with a grin.

Merida looked rather surprised, and quite frankly, terrified- although it was only natural, seeing as this man was so peculiar.

"Hello," She hesitantly spoke.

"Oh, don't worry about me, I'm the doctor." The peculiar man continued, his grin everlasting, and a gleam in his eyes filled with hope and excitement. Merida smiled, acknowledging this man's kindness of heart.

"Yes but, Doctor who?" She asked, clearly confused.

"Exactly." The doctor replied with glee. It might have been an alright answer for most of his companions, but Merida wasn't one to settle for foolish riddles.

"Well? Doctor? What is your name?"

"I'm afraid that information is strictly confidential..." The doctor remarked, his grin twisting into a grim expression.

Merida's suspicion reigned.

"Now listen here you peculiar man-"

"I'm very sorry my dear lady, but I have never revealed my true name to anyone that I ever knew or loved," The doctor interrupted her. He leaned closer into Merida's ear and breathed. "There is only one person who knows my name. And that one person is dead."

Merida was now more repelled than she was intrigued. She was making for an escape when the doctor spoke again.

"I mean, she was killed, but not because she knew my name. The thing is, I trust people with a lot of things, mainly my life, but my name is a secret no one must learn."

The doctor looked genuinely sincere, and Merida rested her case. She was quite understanding for such a stubborn girl, I'll give her that.

"Alright then, Doctor. Tell me this- what the hell is that?" She pointed towards the box. The doctor's gaze followed to where her finger was pointing, and settling upon his blue box, he gasped excitedly.

"That, my good friend, is a TARDIS!"

If Merida was confused before, now she was as lost as a needle in a stack of hay.

"Time and Relative dimensions in space." Still no response from Merida. "It's what I travel with." He tried to clear up.

"Oh," She was starting to understand. "So sort of like a horse, then?" Merida struggled to relate the Tardis to Angus.

"Umm, no- not exactly. It's much faster than a horse. Come, let me demonstrate!" The doctor grabbed Merida's pale hand and led her into the Tardis. Merida was restraining her initial instinct to kick the doctor's groin, for who knew what kind of a maniac he was?

"Woah" She managed to muster as she set eyes upon the interior of the doctor's tardis. Any and all violent thoughts of kicking and groins were now disintegrated. Merida was finally impressed.

"It's so vast, so spacious!"Merida commented. The doctor still anticipated the expected remark. "But how does it all fit in one man-sized box?" Not what the doctor was really expecting, but it'll do. "Oh, wait! I know! You're a witch, aren't you?"

"Err." Now it was the doctor's turn to be confused. "Not really-" He began to say, but seeing as Merida grew even more frustrated from confusion, he eventually gave in.

"Uh, yes! I'm a witch. Something like that, sure."

Merida watched as The Doctor hopped to the centre of the room, picking and prodding at a series of structures, clicking buttons, and finally pulling a lever. She was standing near the doorway, her eyes as big as ever, and her gaze trailed behind the doctor, trying not to faint.

"You're not from around here, are you?" she spoke. Her eyes were targeting the big metallic table that held all these peculiar appliances. "And there's more rooms here, aren't there? This isn't the only one. You've got an entire castle fit into a tiny box!" She exclaimed, raising her hands in frustration.

The Doctor turned around swiftly, his hands held up near his face as he smirked. Nearing Merida, he started explaining.

"Well, no. I'm not from around here." The doctor paused, straightening his bowtie. He looked up again and faintly smiled. "You see, I'm from a different planet, called Gallifrey,"

"Kallifay?" Merida asked.

"No, no. Gallifrey." The doctor shook his head.

"Oh. What about that? I mean, you're insane. That's impossible!" She spoke with attempted conviction. But her heart wasn't in it as she accused the doctor. Some part of her truly believed him, there was something so magical, so foreign about him.

"Of course, this machine here," He gestured around him, "Allows me to travel through space and time," The doctor completed, patting a tardis wall.

"Space...and time?"

"And time."

Merida finally smiled, wider than she wanted to let on, but she couldn't contain herself. The doctor, upon seeing her grin, inhaled quickly and jumped back onto the elevated ramp holding the table at the centre of the room.

"So, where to?"

Merida was taken aback by this question. She leaned against the open door, pushing it back and shutting it. She jumped at the thud of the door, and gasped, slightly scared. _I am _not_ a coward. _Merida thought.

"Uhh, I dunno- besides, i don't think that's a very good idea...My horse is bound to start looking for me in no time." Although she knew it most probably would be in a long time, Merida was desperate for an excuse. Even so, it was partially true. If she started going around with a strange man through space and time, people were bound to notice her absence.

"That's not a problem. I can travel through time as well- remember? I can bring you back here at the same moment we left. It's like you'll only have been gone a second!" The doctor replied in fascination for himself. Merida hesitated, staring at her feet, as her left foot started tracing drawings on the floor.

"Sure." She finally answered. Merida jumped up and ran to where the doctor was, taking a closer look at all the appliances. "Woah."

"I know!" The doctor confirmed. "It's impressive to humans even 800 years from now!" He said, remembering his previous companions. "You're part of my past, not my present- Merida."

He knew her name. Though this would've been cause for alarm, Merida dismissed it. It was almost as if she knew that her purpose somehow related to the doctor. She believed him, wholeheartedly. She had seen wisps, met a witch, had half her family transformed to bears. There was no doubt this man was speaking truthfully. She knew the doctor's face was the face of a man who had seen and done extraordinary things. And Merida wanted to be a part of it.

"Your present is my future, right?"

The doctor nodded.

"Well, I suppose, let's go see what your present is like!" Merida completed.

The doctor nodded again, and he gleefully jumped while pulling one final lever. He had known she would ask for this.

Merida smiled, satisfied, as she rested her hands on her hips. She noticed the doctor hastily grab onto the table, and instinctively rushed to do the same. Her hands flew to the rails behind her, and she almost didn't make it, because the tardis started violently shaking and rumbling, as the whirring sound commenced once again, deafening to her ears. She didn't dare raise her hands to cover them though, for she'd be flung to the side of the room in no time.

As fast as the whirring had begun, it came to a stop. Merida wiped her sweaty palms on the front of her filthy dress, and made way for the door. Anticipating to see what the future was like, she had no patience left. It was right outside her door!

"Wait!" The doctor grabbed Merida's arm. She swung around to face him, a scowl expressing itself.

"What? What's wrong?" She retorted.

"Merida.." The doctor chuckled. "I think you should get a change of clothes." He shook his head.

Merida blushed fiercely and bit her lip.

"Oh..yeah."


	2. Chapter 2

"This is ridiculous!" Merida exclaimed, as her face twisted into an expression of disgust. Looking at herself in the mirror, she stretched and twirled, inspecting every nook and cranny of her reflection.

The mirror was installed into a crevice on the ground, and the doctor had done good work bringing it up here from one of the many storage rooms he had in the tardis. This particular mirror was a sight to behold; it's smooth and polished surface perfectly depicted the objects it was reflecting, for it was crafted out of the finest Reflective glass in the third moon of Jupiter- (or something like that, I couldn't be sure -the doctor talks too fast), its frame glittering in the cold light the tardis shone onto it, indigo gemstones in perfect balance with the titanium the frame was made of.

But Merida couldn't care less about the artistic merit of the object. She was a princess- and not a very vain one at that. She had already seen her fair share of impressively ornamental mirrors and frankly didn't care about them or their purpose. At this current moment, our red-head rebel was preoccupied with the site of herself, dressed in contemporary (at least to us) clothing.

No longer draped by a long dress, her legs were exposed to the cool air of the Tardis's interior, covered only by a short skirt. When Merida was confronted with the idea of wearing pants, she refused the atrocious thought without reluctance. The doctor tried to scour up a skirt befitting of this time period, but only managed to find one of Amy's old ones. Fortunately for Merida, the amount of running she had done in her life had proved rewarding, her legs long and toned.

She stood there, knees facing each other as she desperately pulled the hem of her skirt lower. Sighing, she gave up and smoothed her cotton blouse, which she especially chose for its pretty violet hue. The doctor grinned at her in pride, quickly shuffling about- pressing buttons, remoting controls- as the crevice turned into a slot and the ancient mirror fell through, presumably to another storage room.

"Rubbish! It looks great on you!" The doctor encouraged.

Merida scowled, pursing her lips as she fumed at the doctor.

"When you suggested me getting a change of clothes I was not really expecting this!" she huffed. Sighing, she added: "I just thought you meant something cleaner than what I was already wearing. This just seems unnecessary."

"Do people in your present usually walk around in their underwear? Is it a human habit? A law perhaps- that would be peculiar…" Merida asked, her anger now shifting to curiousity. "Because you seem to be a lot more…decently dressed, if not a bit eccentric, if comparing to..well-this," she aggressively gestured to her attire.

"It's a fashion style. I used to have a-uhh, a friend, she travelled with me as well- and she preferred to wear these shorter skirts. Though not everyone in this time dresses so 'provocatively' as you stated."

"Huh. Yeah, I get that. They wear those strange thick panty hose- don't they?"

"Umm, trousers- yes! That is very common amongst both women and men alike. They're very comfortable, to be honest." The doctor pulled on his burgundy suspenders and smiled. He fiddled with his bowtie, giving Merida an idea.

"Doctor, can I wear that?" She asked, motioning towards the bowtie with her chin, her hands resting on her hips in aggravation. The doctor gasped and jumped up, rushing to the corner of the room, and messing around with some boxes and containers. He was motioning with his hands as he excitedly spoke -something about low temperatures and bowties, and friends, and whatnot- and occasionally turned to face Merida as he continued talking. He finally found what he was searching for, and threw it up at Merida to catch.

"A ha!" he cheered as he inspected the object flying over to Merida.

Merida's quick reflexes reacted and she caught the object with one arm. Observing it, her eyes widened with glee. It was a beautiful purple velour bowtie. She messily attempted to wear it, crinkling her nose as her hands tangled into her long hair, the bowtie always coming out sloppy and looking absolutely nothing like a bowtie.

The doctor chuckled as he rushed to her and reached out to help. Merida instinctively backed away, scowling down at the bowtie as she relentlessly continued trying to tie it. Groaning in frustration, she threw the attractive cloth to the ground and stomped off the ramp, muttering gaelic insults.

"Forget it, we've got better things to do." She turned around, her one hand holding the tardis door handle, waiting for the doctor to join her. He smiled and picked up the wrinkled bowtie, smoothing it out with his fingers. "Did you hear what I said? Come on, let's GO! Ugh!" Irritated, Merida pulled her hand aggressively from the door and dragged her feet all the way back to the doctor, planning to attempt at pulling him out by the arm. She wanted to explore after all. But the doctor's gentle hands seized her shoulders, steadying her.

"Here, I'll do it." He whispered as his hands got to work. Merida tried to protest but the doctor was too quick. In a few smooth motions, the bowtie was around Merida's neck, and tied appropriately. Not to tight, nor too loose. She stopped squirming as the doctor fluffed the curve of the fabric with his thumbs.

Her brow remained furrowed though, until she looked down and saw the result of the doctor's handiwork. The bowtie suited her well, the bright purple contrasting with the orange of her hair. Merida huffed and looked away, trying not to smile. She didn't want anyone to even think she wasn't capable.

"You're going to have to teach me that." Merida spat as she turned and went out the door, followed by the doctor.

Her irritation vanished when she laid eyes on the landscape that met her. The doctor grinned widely, as he so famously did, resting his hands on Merida's shoulders after closing the tardis door behind him. His face hinted pride, and he _was_ proud of earth, one of his most favoured planets.

Merida's lips mouthed the word "woah", but no sound came out. She was gaping and, though ecstatic and almost overflowing with excitement, her body remained paralyzed and glued in her standing position. She watched as strange horseless carriages drove by -looking a bit like bugs, she thought- and as the many strangely dressed people busied about on their perfectly trimmed lawn, behaving so orderly, so soberly, much unlike her father's entourage. She arched her head back in surprise when she noticed a young couple on a bench kissing passionately, and she turned her head to look at the doctor questioningly. He nodded, chuckling, and said: "Ah, youth."

The doctor let his hands slide off Merida's shoulders, and he tugged at her arm while walking forward into the street.

"How about going on a tour, then?" he asked, waiting no answer as he marched forward.

Merida followed after him, a little taken aback by the soothing tingling feeling the doctor's hands left on her shoulders.


End file.
